Citizen Kane employs much "depth of field" or "deep focus composition" shots. In which sequences is this most evident? What does this technique contribute to the film?
The scenes I can list off the top of my head that are like this are: 1. Mr. Berstein and the news reporter talking while a portrait of Kane is hanging over the office's fire place. 2. The party where Jed, Bernstein and some of the other men talk while a reflection of Kane is dancing on the window. 3. Gitty, Mrs. Kane and Susan talking while Kane is in the dark behind them. 4. Nurse and doctor over an ill Susan, again Kane hanging in the background helplessly 5. The sled, not Kane, is in the "background" from the burners (as in, the distance away from them in terms of importance) which symbolizes his spirit. 6. Kane typing the review with Jed in middleground, Bern in the back.
And others include the mansion where the spouses were yelling across the room, the election stand, the wide shots of his mansion and all the glorious things around it, the people scavenging his treasures, etc. But in terms of similarity of the shot, it is the five (which is not limited to) I mention.
This technique contributes to the film as it shows that even a rich, powerful and successful man like Mr. Charles Foster Kane doesn't have the power of how people treat him in terms of actions and opinions. And it is also symbolizes of how cruel the faith of life has on people and that it doesn't discriminate people of different wealth and/or background. It will bring sorrow and steal happiness to all.
Deep focus composition is viewed through the whole movie, but there's one place where it stood out to me the most. It was the scene when Kane and his wife were yelling at each other in the middle of the mansion. It showed how even when someone as rich as Kane can still be unhappy with all those treasures and expensive objects in the background. It showed how Kane was just in the background, little, but still yelling back.
This shot shows that even if Charles Foster Kane is rich and has power. He still doesn't get treated with respect and always gets hurt verbally by people who think they are higher class then him. It also shows that even the wealthy will have conflicts in there life. Nobody in life is perfect and everyone has problems making the person who they are in the end.
Different types of "deep focus composition" shots are used throughout the movie. One of these scenes that stood out to me the most was when Kane's wife was complaining to Kane about spending too much time at the inquirer and not enough time at home.
They ate together everyday and as the days progressed, the fighting seemed to get worse and worse. One of the last shots you see is Mrs. Kane reading a different newspaper than the one her husband makes. This shows the amount of tension there is. The last shot you see is Mrs. Kane and Kane eating but only this time, they are seated very seperated from each other rather then the first time they ate together. This scene is used as a sign that their marriage is crumbling.
The shots in which the deep focus shots are the shots when we see Kane in the background and the two or three people in the front of the shot deciding his fate. it is evident this was to be a major motif when the director was creating the film. We see that in the film it gives it a meaning like Kane was never in control of his own life so he tried to control others. for example he tried to control his second wife by making her sing. even though she didn't want to and almost killed herself because of it.
The shots in which Welles uses deep focus is in the scene where young Charlie is playing in the snow, when Charlie, his wife, and his opponent are at Susan's house, and when Jed is walking towards Charlie with Mr. Bernstein in the background. Using the deep focus shots, the audience can imply that all the characters in the shot have some importance, otherwise they would have been blurred out. The audience has the choose of who to look at. In all three scene that I mentioned above, your eyes goes to the people in the foreground, but because of the sharp image, you will notice all of the shot. In all of the deep focus shots, even the ones I have not noted, have contributed to the film when Kane is in the background, and even though he has the most power in the film, in these shots, even though his power is not lost,(which is why he is not blurred), he has no control over the situation(why he is in the background.)
In Citizen Kane Welles uses many deep focus composition shots throughout the film. These shots are mostly used in scenes where a conflict takes places for example when Charlies father argues with his wife about their son, when Kane fires Jed, and when Kane argues with his wife Susan. In these situations the deep composition shot is effective because it adds dimension to the shot and displays all parties that appear in the scene. This shot allows to place the important characters of the scene in the front to appear larger and minor characters in the back. When Kane is shown in the scene where he is typing Jed's review the camera shows him on the side but because he is in the front allows the viewer to infer that he will be a key figure in the scene. Overall the deep composition shots serve their purpose and contribute to the understanding of the film.
There are numerous deep focus composition shots in the film Citizen Kane, especially centering around the flashback scenes or the past of Charles Foster Kane. An example would be a flashback explaing about Charles Foster Kane's early childhood where Kane's mother sends him away to become a newspaper editor, only for the father to prevent that from happening but fails to do so. During that shot, the camera is focused on Kane's mother and father and the man who would take the young Charles Foster Kane, while the young Charles Foster Kane can be seen far out within the background. Another example would be the scene where Charles Foster Kane is celebrating with his co-workers and other people of the newspaper company becuase of their chances of winning the Spanish-American War. During that particular scene, the camera focuses on Charles Foster Kane and all of the people who celebrate and cheer as the camera moves around, capturing every actor or that the camera itself would capture the entire set containing all of the actors at the same time. These deep focus composition shots may also contribute towards the viewers who are able to understand the plot of the film and how they are able to predict what will happen from the beginning until the very end of the film.
Welles uses the deep focus composition shots many times throughout the film; mostly at turning points in the movie. The shot where Charlie Kane is being sold is one of the most important shots in the movie, to me, because it shows how little importance Charlie has there. At the very end of the movie, there is reference to that scene as well. Another deep focus composition shot was when Susan tried to commit suicide. You can clearly see the medicine in the foreground, Susan in the middle ground, and Kane busting through the door in the background. Welles uses this type of shot when Kane is typing the notice about Susan's performance as well. This technique influences how I saw the movie because it shows how much detail Welles put into making the movie. And yes, everything is there for a purpose.
the director of the movie Welles uses the deep focus composition shot throughout the movie and in most of the shot Mr. Kane is present himself. One if the shot was when Mr. Bernstein and the reporter is talking about Mr. Kane and his picture was hanging in the back on the wall. AS usual he had no power; he was powerless like he was in most of the other deep focus composition shot. This technique helps the viewers to understand better what is going on in the scene and also to show that how each character is important and has an important role in the scene
Deep focus composition shots are evident throughout the film. When Kane's mother is signing him away as a child and Kane is visible through the window playing in the snow with his sled, is an example of this type of shot. Another example would be when his wife and his political opponent were deciding his fate while he stood in the background unable to voice his opinion, similar to situation in the previous example. Deep focus composition shots give a level of importance to each character in the shot, adding to the narrative without being said.
The scenes I can list off the top of my head that are like this are:
ReplyDelete1. Mr. Berstein and the news reporter talking while a portrait of Kane is hanging over the office's fire place.
2. The party where Jed, Bernstein and some of the other men talk while a reflection of Kane is dancing on the window.
3. Gitty, Mrs. Kane and Susan talking while Kane is in the dark behind them.
4. Nurse and doctor over an ill Susan, again Kane hanging in the background helplessly
5. The sled, not Kane, is in the "background" from the burners (as in, the distance away from them in terms of importance) which symbolizes his spirit.
6. Kane typing the review with Jed in middleground, Bern in the back.
And others include the mansion where the spouses were yelling across the room, the election stand, the wide shots of his mansion and all the glorious things around it, the people scavenging his treasures, etc. But in terms of similarity of the shot, it is the five (which is not limited to) I mention.
This technique contributes to the film as it shows that even a rich, powerful and successful man like Mr. Charles Foster Kane doesn't have the power of how people treat him in terms of actions and opinions. And it is also symbolizes of how cruel the faith of life has on people and that it doesn't discriminate people of different wealth and/or background. It will bring sorrow and steal happiness to all.
Deep focus composition is viewed through the whole movie, but there's one place where it stood out to me the most. It was the scene when Kane and his wife were yelling at each other in the middle of the mansion. It showed how even when someone as rich as Kane can still be unhappy with all those treasures and expensive objects in the background. It showed how Kane was just in the background, little, but still yelling back.
ReplyDeleteThis shot shows that even if Charles Foster Kane is rich and has power. He still doesn't get treated with respect and always gets hurt verbally by people who think they are higher class then him. It also shows that even the wealthy will have conflicts in there life. Nobody in life is perfect and everyone has problems making the person who they are in the end.
Different types of "deep focus composition" shots are used throughout the movie. One of these scenes that stood out to me the most was when Kane's wife was complaining to Kane about spending too much time at the inquirer and not enough time at home.
ReplyDeleteThey ate together everyday and as the days progressed, the fighting seemed to get worse and worse. One of the last shots you see is Mrs. Kane reading a different newspaper than the one her husband makes. This shows the amount of tension there is. The last shot you see is Mrs. Kane and Kane eating but only this time, they are seated very seperated from each other rather then the first time they ate together. This scene is used as a sign that their marriage is crumbling.
The shots in which the deep focus shots are the shots when we see Kane in the background and the two or three people in the front of the shot deciding his fate. it is evident this was to be a major motif when the director was creating the film. We see that in the film it gives it a meaning like Kane was never in control of his own life so he tried to control others. for example he tried to control his second wife by making her sing. even though she didn't want to and almost killed herself because of it.
ReplyDeleteThe shots in which Welles uses deep focus is in the scene where young Charlie is playing in the snow, when Charlie, his wife, and his opponent are at Susan's house, and when Jed is walking towards Charlie with Mr. Bernstein in the background. Using the deep focus shots, the audience can imply that all the characters in the shot have some importance, otherwise they would have been blurred out. The audience has the choose of who to look at. In all three scene that I mentioned above, your eyes goes to the people in the foreground, but because of the sharp image, you will notice all of the shot. In all of the deep focus shots, even the ones I have not noted, have contributed to the film when Kane is in the background, and even though he has the most power in the film, in these shots, even though his power is not lost,(which is why he is not blurred), he has no control over the situation(why he is in the background.)
ReplyDeleteIn Citizen Kane Welles uses many deep focus composition shots throughout the film. These shots are mostly used in scenes where a conflict takes places for example when Charlies father argues with his wife about their son, when Kane fires Jed, and when Kane argues with his wife Susan. In these situations the deep composition shot is effective because it adds dimension to the shot and displays all parties that appear in the scene. This shot allows to place the important characters of the scene in the front to appear larger and minor characters in the back. When Kane is shown in the scene where he is typing Jed's review the camera shows him on the side but because he is in the front allows the viewer to infer that he will be a key figure in the scene. Overall the deep composition shots serve their purpose and contribute to the understanding of the film.
ReplyDeleteThere are numerous deep focus composition shots in the film Citizen Kane, especially centering around the flashback scenes or the past of Charles Foster Kane. An example would be a flashback explaing about Charles Foster Kane's early childhood where Kane's mother sends him away to become a newspaper editor, only for the father to prevent that from happening but fails to do so. During that shot, the camera is focused on Kane's mother and father and the man who would take the young Charles Foster Kane, while the young Charles Foster Kane can be seen far out within the background. Another example would be the scene where Charles Foster Kane is celebrating with his co-workers and other people of the newspaper company becuase of their chances of winning the Spanish-American War. During that particular scene, the camera focuses on Charles Foster Kane and all of the people who celebrate and cheer as the camera moves around, capturing every actor or that the camera itself would capture the entire set containing all of the actors at the same time. These deep focus composition shots may also contribute towards the viewers who are able to understand the plot of the film and how they are able to predict what will happen from the beginning until the very end of the film.
ReplyDeleteWelles uses the deep focus composition shots many times throughout the film; mostly at turning points in the movie. The shot where Charlie Kane is being sold is one of the most important shots in the movie, to me, because it shows how little importance Charlie has there. At the very end of the movie, there is reference to that scene as well. Another deep focus composition shot was when Susan tried to commit suicide. You can clearly see the medicine in the foreground, Susan in the middle ground, and Kane busting through the door in the background. Welles uses this type of shot when Kane is typing the notice about Susan's performance as well. This technique influences how I saw the movie because it shows how much detail Welles put into making the movie. And yes, everything is there for a purpose.
ReplyDeletethe director of the movie Welles uses the deep focus composition shot throughout the movie and in most of the shot Mr. Kane is present himself. One if the shot was when Mr. Bernstein and the reporter is talking about Mr. Kane and his picture was hanging in the back on the wall. AS usual he had no power; he was powerless like he was in most of the other deep focus composition shot.
ReplyDeleteThis technique helps the viewers to understand better what is going on in the scene and also to show that how each character is important and has an important role in the scene
Great comments. Please be sure to comment on the posts of your peers.
ReplyDeleteDeep focus composition shots are evident throughout the film. When Kane's mother is signing him away as a child and Kane is visible through the window playing in the snow with his sled, is an example of this type of shot. Another example would be when his wife and his political opponent were deciding his fate while he stood in the background unable to voice his opinion, similar to situation in the previous example. Deep focus composition shots give a level of importance to each character in the shot, adding to the narrative without being said.
ReplyDelete